HUMAN-EXPERIMENTATION WITH NEISSERIA-GONORRHOEAE - RATIONALE, METHODS, AND IMPLICATIONS FOR THE BIOLOGY OF INFECTION AND VACCINE DEVELOPMENT

Neisseria gonorrhoeae infection is limited to the human host. Experime ntal urethral infection in male volunteers was used to study different aspects of the infection. Urethral installation of a variety of gonoc occal variants (10(4)-10(6)) led to infection in 27 subjects, who deve loped pyuria and shed bacteria in urine before urethritis developed 1- 6 days after gonococcal inoculation. The incubation period was affecte d by the inoculation procedure and size of the inoculum. Subjects were treated with intramuscular ceftriaxone (250 mg) if urethritis develop ed or at 6 days after. inoculation. Urine cultures became negative wit hin several hours of therapy, and symptoms resolved within 1 day of th erapy. Infected patients suffered no major complications. Experimental male urethral gonococcal infection provides a unique opportunity to u nderstand the biology and immunology of gonococcal infection and is an efficient method to test gonococcal vaccine candidates.